Tales from the Gray Area, a collection of seven novellas by Curtis Stephen Burdick, stems from the author’s fascination with The Twilight Zone. The novellas encompass a variety of themes and characters, including supernatural and extra-terrestrial. In one story, many children are born worldwide with a curious birthmark, which resembles a symbol from a hitherto undeciphered ancient language. Somewhere, monstrous creatures arriving from the depths of the ocean attack humankind. In another novella, an unlikely friendship forms between an alien and a movie star. A Romani woman flees her pursuers to save her children from a terrible fate. Fallen archangels take a break from hell and roam the earth disguised as human beings.

Curtis Stephen Burdick set his novellas in vastly different backgrounds, from a seemingly endless sea to an arid desert, from a busy and wide-awake city to a remote, snow-covered valley. Although the predominant theme was supernatural occurrences, I loved how he provided each character with a thorough background. Incredibly enough, I ended up rooting for a demon from hell and empathized with an alien emperor living lightyears away from his home planet. The novella “Sorceress” maintained a sense of mysticism throughout, while the unexpected ending of “Reincarnated” left much for the reader’s imagination. My favorite was “Vacation from Hell,” which revealed redeeming attributes even in a soulless person. The humorous conversations between aliens and humans in “Alien Addiction” added a unique flavor to the story. I would recommend Tales from the Gray Area to any reader who appreciates illusory stories with unpredictable endings.

Tales from the Gray Area is a collection of seven short stories written by Curtis Stephen Burdick. Set in different periods and varying in genres, all the stories share a common thread in the mystery of the unknown and mystical. Bottom Dwellers is about a deep-sea exploration vessel's crew who unwittingly releases monstrous tentacled creatures from the dark depths of the ocean's floor that brings down the apocalypse. On Vacation from Hell, a Fallen Angel visits Earth and possesses the body of a corrupt politician, only to fall in love with his wife and family. Discoveries at River View sees a man's attempts to stop construction in his valley turned upside down when prehistoric remains are found at the site. In Alien Addiction, a drug-addled emperor of an alien civilization seeks recovery at a rehab clinic on Earth.

Fans of TV shows such as The Twilight Zone or The X-Files are in for a treat as Tales from the Gray Area hits every spot that made those shows popular in the first place. Author Curtis Stephen Burdick's stories range from the surreal and hypnotic to humorous and tragic, quite often being all of these at once. Every single story has something different to offer, yet the tone remains the same. The narrative is well-paced and breezes by quickly. Almost all the climaxes felt ambiguous. Curtis Stephen Burdick switches genres between sci-fi, fantasy, supernatural, and even horror in a seamless fashion. I found Vacation from Hell, Sanctuary, and Alien Addiction to be my top three favorites, although I enjoyed them all. I highly recommend Tales from the Gray Area.